1st triathlon no idea what im doin...

Just after some advice, I just signed up for a Sprint Triathlon (S 750m, C 20k, R 5k) and no idea what are good times or how long i should take for each event and the whole thing... Its not till July but am fairly fit as I just done my 1st marathon in 4:03. also any other advice would be good.

A 'good' time depends on what you class as good? Have a look at last years results that should give you an idea of what front and mid packers are doing. Your time is going to depend on how good you are at each discipline, pacing, transitions etc. Id say for a first race concentrate on learning the ropes and enjoying it.

You'll probably find that the "average" standard in a tri is rather better than for a running race - especially large city races with lots of run-walkers. I tend to finish about 1/4 of the way down the field in a running race, but was 3/4 of the way down in my first Oly.

Expect your run time to be slower (I did 52 mins and at the time would have expected about 43-44 mins for just a run - no-one did under 40 mins!).

As others have said, just enjoy it, may be more variety of times for a sprint.

Some key things - practice biking a lot - it's the leg where you can gain most time. Practice brick sessions (do a ride and then run straight after) - it takes a bit of getting used to. Practice transitions.

I did my 1st sprint tri last weekend & not really bothered about times just to get round. Next time I hope will be different, lessons learned, its not a scary as you think & get out on the bike & do the hills & more brick sessions. I read the pirates guide for setting up & racking & also checked some of the rules, so was pretty miffed to find coming in to T2 that someone had moved my box & racked their bike in my place.

"miffed to find coming in to T2 that someone had moved my box & racked their bike in my place"

technically that's an offence (Rule 23.7)and can lead to a DQ (Rule 29.5.j)

and if it happens again, report it to an official

it's always good to acquaint yourself with the rules so that if something happens that prevents you achieving your ambitions, or you get penalised for something, then you will have a good understanding of why and what you can do about it. they are there to guide and help all parties, including the officials.

most cases are accidents Dave - heat of the moment stuff - and being able to prove intent to interfere is hard. I would suggest that moving a T box is intentional interference

racking the bike in the wrong place is not unusual (usually beginners) and provided there is still space for the incomer to rack theirs, then is that "unsporting impedance"?? probably best to give beginners a verbal warning, experienced guys a penalty, intentional interference a straight DQ. but usually the official needs to see it happening to make the call - after the event is harder to regulate.

FB I brought it to the attention of the referee and also sent an email to the club but got nothing back. What annoyed me was he was a member of the home club & his bike was still there when I got back from the run so I know he wasn't late in racking although that is no excuse.

Previously bookmarked threads are now visible in "Followed Threads". You can also manage notifications on these threads from the "Forum Settings" section of your profile settings page to prevent being sent an email when a reply is made.